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Ecuador’s prosecutor’s office this Friday requested the detention of ex-president Lenin Moreno, accused of accepting US$76 million in bribes for bribery.
Lawyer Diana Salazar warned that the amount equal to 4% of the value of the contract to build the Coco Koto Sinclair Dam awarded to the Chinese construction company Sinohotro during Rafael Moreno’s tenure as Vice President in Correa’s government.
Moreno’s wife, daughter, mother-in-law, two brothers and two sisters are among the 37 people charged by the prosecutor’s office. US$660,000 in kickbacks.
The prosecutor requested that all 37 people involved be remanded in custody with a view to ensuring that everyone is present throughout the criminal process.
Moreno and 13 other defendants over the age of 65 must comply with that under house arrest.
The public prosecutor requested a national freeze on bank accounts and international criminal assistance to secure accounts held by the defendants in Switzerland, Spain, Panama, China, Paraguay, the United States and Belize.
Manipulation
The investigation, which began in March 2019, “reveals the structure of corruption surrounding the Koko Koto Sinclair hydroelectric project, which is interstate and transnational in scope. would have developed His illegal activities between 2009 and 2018Salazar said in a message posted on social media this week.
“The amount of alleged bribery amounts to approximately US$76 million, approximately 4% of the contract value of the work, which was initially estimated to be approximately US$1,979 million,” Salazar explained.
The final cost of the job exceeded US$2.2 billion, the prosecutor said, adding that the alleged bribes would have been paid by Sinohydro and channeled through third parties.
China has not responded to requests for cooperation in the case, Salazar said.
Lenin Moreno’s Defense Rejects Allegations
Moreno denies the allegations
The former president lives in Paraguay, where he is a commissioner of the Organization of American States with Disabilities.
Moreno denies the allegations and says he is surprised by the prosecutor’s office’s actions at a time when Ecuador is experiencing “a complicated political situation.”
“I have no responsibility in the ‘most iconic’ work contract of the People’s Revolution, no,” Moreno said in a letter posted Wednesday on his Twitter account about former President Rafael Correa’s political group. .
“I will defend myself by being completely truthful,” he added.
Moreno, who was Ecuador’s president between 2017 and 2021 and vice president between 2007 and 2013, has claimed that he was orchestrated by former president Rafael Correa, his former mentor and later rival.
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